Bacteriological Xochimilco
Bacteriological Xochimilco
Bacteriological Xochimilco
5
0099-2240/84/051074-06$02.00/0
Copyright © 1984, American Society for Microbiology
Xochimilco county plots (Mexico City), one of the most fertile agricultural areas in the Valley of Mexico,
produce a large portion of the fresh vegetables consumed in the city. These plots are generally irrigated with
domestic wastewater, and for this reason, it was deemed important to examine and evaluate the
Agricultural employment of wastewater for irrigation is (21 km southeast of Mexico City) (Fig. 1). The village is a
based on the value of its water content and its constituents section of Xochimilco county and is built on a system of
which are used as fertilizers (12). In addition, wastewater channels and land parcels as part of the Xochimilco-Chalco
also contains salts, toxic metallic compounds, and pathogen- lake basin.
ic organisms; thus, its content can also be harmful to the soil, The Xochimilco-Chalco lake basin is a closed basin in
crops, grazing animals, and public health (22, 27). Although which the water level of the lake is maintained by a series of
more acreage is being developed for irrigation, the demand springs. At present most of the lake is dessicated, and there
for water is greater, but its quality tends to be degraded as it are only 82 km of channels left, with plots between them
is reused. which the natives call "chinampas."
It has been well established that bacteria, viruses, proto- The chinampas or plots are some of the most fertile and
zoa, nematodes, and fungi capable of causing diseases can productive agricultural areas in the Valley of Mexico. The
be found in foods contaminated with sewage water (3, 9, 12, fertility of the soil in the plots is due mainly to the existence
24, 29). Therefore, for more satisfactory results, wastewater of sufficient water for irrigation and to the lime extracted
should be treated to remove harmful substances and micro- from the channels that is used as a soil conditioner (G. E.
organisms before it is used for irrigation. Cerrantes and E. R. Torres, M.S. thesis, Universidad Na-
Different authors have proved that vegetables are contam- cional Aut6noma de Mexico, Mexico, D.F., 1981).
inated with microorganisms when they are irrigated with The water supply for domestic and industrial use in
sewage water and when the soil is fertilized with manure Mexico City, one of the most populated cities in the world,
because both usually contain great amounts of pathogenic has become one of the major problems faced by the govern-
organisms (6, 9, 13). Special attention has been paid to those ment. As a result of the continuous water shortage, the
vegetables that are eaten raw since the microorganisms that government initiated a program to satisfy the increasing
settle over them are able to survive for several weeks, and demand for water.
when these vegetables are consumed, they could produce One of the solutions to this problem proposed by the
diarrhea, salmonellosis, shigellosis, etc. (5, 12, 18-20). program was the drilling of water wells in the Xochimilco
A large amount of the vegetables consumed by Mexico area. As a consequence of the continuous extraction of
City inhabitants comes mainly from the Xochimilco county underground water, however, the water levels decreased
plots and agricultural areas near the city, and since these drastically, which caused the springs to dry and the lake to
areas are generally irrigated with raw municipal wastewater, almost disappear.
the vegetables represent a threat to the public health. To replenish water in the lake, an activated sludge treat-
This study deals with the bacteriological contamination of ment plant was built. The plant (consisting of grit removal,
crops grown in Xochimilco county plots and was undertaken primary sedimentation, conventional diffused aereation
to demonstrate that the consumption of these vegetables tank, final clarifier, and chlorine disinfection) began to
represents a potential hazard to public health, especially operate in 1959 with a capacity of 400 liter s-1 that could be
when the vegetables are eaten raw. increased up to 1,250 liter s-1. The continuous expansion of
This study was performed in the village of San Gregorio the plant was considered adequate for maintaining the water
level in the remaining channels and in the lake.
It is important to point out that at the time the plant began
*
Corresponding author. to operate, water quality regulations for agricultural and
1074
VOL. 47, 1984 BACTERIOLOGICAL QUALITY OF WASTEWATER-IRRIGATED CROPS 1075
TABLE 1. Bacterial numbers (TC and FC) in irrigation water, vegetables, and soil from Xochimilco plots
Geometric mean of the following types of bacteria in the following samples:
Type of TC FC
crop Irrigation Vegetable' Soil' Irrigation Vegetable' SoilC.d
water' -8 water' (n =18)
(nb =15) (nl1)
=
n 3) (n =15) (n =36)
Ten grams of each crop and soil sample were weighed, permissible concentration (MPC) established by the U.S.
diluted to 100 ml with sterile phosphate buffer, and homoge- Department of Interior Federal Water Pollution Control
nized for 1 min in a Waring blender (21). Administration for Water in Agricultural Use (26).
Bacteriological examination. (i) Water. TC and FC were
enumerated by the membrane filter technique (Millipore
Corp.) (14, 28). Portions of the dilute sample (1.0, 0.1, and Total Foca I
0.01 ml) were filtered through sterile membrane filters (pore MPC- Maximum permissible concentration
3 x105 r In IrrigatIon Water
size, 0.45 rim; diameter, 47 mm). M-Endo broth was used as
the culture medium for TC counts.
Sample dilutions of 1.0 and 0.1 ml were filtered through
(pore size, 0.70 rim; diameter, 47 mm) sterile membrane
filters, and FC broth was used for FC enumeration.
(ii) Vegetables and soils. Bacteriological examination was
performed by the three-tube fermentation technique, as 0-
specified in Standard Methods for the Examination of Water 6
and Wastewater (1, 28), in which lactose and brilliant green
bile broths were used for the presumptive and confirmative 0
test of TC, whereas lactose broth and EC broth were used
for the presumptive and confirmative test of FC. cc 1O4
From the homogenized solutions of stalks and leaves,
dilutions of 1.0, 0.1, and 0.01 ml were taken for the TC IL. tOw L7oE Iii MPC
analysis, whereas dilutions of 10, 1.0, and 0.1 ml were taken 0
-J
for FC analysis. U
Dilutions of 0.1, 0.01, and 0.001 ml were taken from the
homogenized solutions of soil and root core samples for TC z
4
analysis, and dilutions of 1.0, 0.1 and 0.01 ml were taken for
FC analysis. ma 103 Ir~rigailonWater -
Physical and chemical examination of soils. Soil samples 0 0
IO3 t 2ma l 0
were dried and sieved (no. 10 sieve) before analysis. CJ,
Color was determined by the Bouyoucos method. Solid
particle density was determined by weighing 10 ml of soil,
and the bulk density was determined with a picnometer. The
percentage of pore space was calculated by considering bulk
w
ma
0
03
,l U
0 C.)
I-
0
1".
4
_ R7
3
co
determined by the method of Walkley and Black and from
the pH of the soil solution.
Cation exchange capacity was determined by titrating a
1.0 N NaCl soil solution with 0.02 N EDTA solution, and the
Morgan technique was used for the determination of N-NO3
and P-P04 (11).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Bacterial numbers in irrigation water. The bacteriological
. _
irrigation water
analysis results of the water used for irrigation are given in FIG. 2. TC and FC counts in water used for crop irrigation and a
Table 1. comparison with the MPC (Federal Water Pollution Control Admin-
The values obtained were compared with the maximum istration [26]).
VOL. 47, 1984 BACTERIOLOGICAL QUALITY OF WASTEWATER-IFRIGATED CROPS 1077
(a 105
Solid particle density (g cm-3) 0.59 0.54 lr
Bulk density (g cm-3) 2.1 2.0
Mn (ppm) 5 5 w
co
S04 (ppm) 250 250
CO3 (HCOmeq 100 g-1) 0 0
HCO3 (HCOmeq 100 g-l) 0.34 0.46
a
ppm, Parts per million equivalent to micrograms per milliliter.
S OI L
FIG. 3. Soil distribution of TC and FC counts at different depths
The results indicate that the TC values found are consider- in the plots from which the studied crops were harvested.
ably higher (7 to 50 times) than the MPC in 85% of channels
sampled. However, it is also noted that the FC values
exceed the MPC in 90% of the samples taken from two of the When FC counts between water and soil were compared,
channels (Fig. 2) near the poultry and porcine farm, from a higher bacterial density was found in the latter, which can
which solid and liquid wastes were usually discharged into be attributed to: (i) the use of sewage as fertilizer and (ii)
the channels. The water from these channels was used to physical and chemical characteristics of the soil (Table 2),
irrigate the radish parcels. The results further indicate that such as permanent humidity, richness in organic matter, and
this water is unsuitable for irrigating the parcels. a pH between 6 and 7, which are features that favor the
Bacterial content of soil. The role that the soil plays in the reproduction of microorganisms (2, 25; Cervantes and T6r-
bacteriological contamination of vegetables, due to the di- res, M.S. thesis).
rect contact between soil and plants, is well known, especial- Vertical distribution of bacteria in soil. As expected, the
ly when they are irrigated with wastewater containing 4 x highest bacterial densities were found on the soil surface.
104 to 2 x 105 bacteria per 100 ml as in this case. However, a significant quantity was found at a depth of 20
There is a high probability for soil contamination due cm, and even in samples taken at a depth of 1.20 m from
mainly to the protection from solar radiation that leaves and ditches dug on the plots, the numbers of bacteria were still
other parts of the plants give to bacteria and other microor- significant, due mainly to soil porosity, runoff, and infiltra-
ganisms (12) (Table 1). Soil samples taken from plots in tion of polluted water (Fig. 3).
which celery and parsley, which have smaller foliar struc- Bacterial distribution in vegetables. Table 3 shows the TC
tures, were grown exhibited lower TC concentrations. and FC distribution on different parts of the crops sampled.
TrABLE 4. Bacterial numbers in the edible part of rinsed and and FC remaining after the edible part of the vegetables was
unrinsed sampled crops rinsed.
Geometric mean' of the following samples The results (Table 4) indicate that the TC and FC numbers
Type of
of the following types of bacteria: decreased in variable quantities depending on the kind of
crop Rinsed Unrinsed crop.
A TC and FC removal of 75 to 95% and 17 to 90%,
TC FC TC FC respectively, was observed, notwithstanding the fact that
Celery 300 30 1,300 300 leaves and stems were rinsed for 30 s. The low removal of
Spinach 2,400 1,700 8,700 2,400 TC and FC observed in the leaves of the spinach could be
Lettuce 700 570 37,000 3,600 attributed to the structure of the leaves, which does not
Parsley 370 300 3,100 660 allow an effective rinse. With respect to the radishes, the
Radish 650 300 2,600 360 rinse procedure alone was not sufficient to remove soil
a Most probable number per 100 g. particles attached to the tubercle surface, and a brush
washing had to be used. The variability in bacterial removal
As expected, the higher concentrations of bacteria were was considered to be due to the fact that the same rinse
by wastewater. J. Food Prot. 40:45-56. 18. Rudolfs, W., L. L. Falk, and R. A. Ragotzkie. 1951. Contamina-
4. Calder6n, J. E. 1978. Lo mas reciente acerca de las infecciones tion of vegetables grown in polluted soil. I. Bacterial contamina-
gastrointestinales, p. 1-40. Sociedad Mexicana de Infectologia, tion. Sewage Ind. Wastes 23:253-268.
Mexico City. 19. Rudolfs, W., L. L. Falk, and R. A. Ragotzkie. 1951. Contamina-
5. Dunlop, S. G., and W. L. Wang. 1961. Studies on the use of tion of vegetables grown in polluted soil. II. Field and labora-
sewage effluent for irrigation of truck crops. J. Milk Food tory studies on Endamoeba cysts. Sewage Ind. Wastes 23:478-
Technol. 24:44-47. 485.
6. Epstein, L., D. Kimberly, and G. Safir. 1982. Plant disease in an 20. Rudolfs, W., L. L. Falk, and R. A. Ragotzkie. 1951. Contamina-
old field ecosystem irrigated with municipal wastewater. J. tion of vegetables grown in polluted soil. III. Field studies on
Environ. Qual. 11:65-69. Ascaris eggs. Sewage Ind. Wastes 23:656-660.
7. Ercolani, G. L. 1976. Bacteriological quality assessment offresh 21. Secretaria de Agricultura y Recursos Hidraiulicos. 1979. Reuso
marketed lettuce and fennel. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 31:847- del agua en la agricultura, la industria, los municipios y en la
852. recarga de acufferos, Contrato no. SP-78-C-6 clave POE-78-6.
8. Frazier, C. W., and D. Westhoff. 1970. Food microbiology, p. Direcci6n General de Protecci6n y Ordenaci6n Ecol6gica. Se-
62-72, 201-251. McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York. cretaria de Recursos Hidraulicos, Mexico City.
9. Geldreich, E. E., and R. H. Bordner. 1971. Fecal contamination 22. Sheikh-Ol-Eslami, B., W. R. Kirkpatrick, and R. S. Jaques.
of fruits and vegetables during cultivation and processing for 1979. Food crop irrigation with reclaimed municipal wastewa-